This invention relates to the conveyance of stringed tags, and more particularly to the alignment of stringed tags into discrete groups.
Stringed tags are produced by mechanical equipment, such as the Graeber Inc. Whirlwind 185 Knotter. These machines insert a string through an aperture in a tag and tie a knot in the string. The result is a tag which may be fastened to various articles such as luggage, storage items, or for sale items.
After the stringed tags are produced, they are mechanically inserted between two fixed plates disposed in close conformity, such that the knot lies on one side of the plates, and the tag on the other. The operator then manually counts the stringed tags and places them in containers for distribution or sale to the user.
Counting of the tags is a time consuming and tedious process. Production speed is limited by the speed at which tags can be counted, and by the number of persons at the counting task. Moreover, the stringed tags must be manually inserted into a container. An additional drawback is that due to the repetitious and tedious nature of counting, miscounts are common.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide for the mechanical conveyance of stringed tags away from the tag production unit.
It is an additional object of the invention to separate mechanically counted stringed tags into visually distinct groups.
Still another object of the invention is to provide for removal of a bunched group of stringed tags by an operator.
It is a further object of the invention to provide for mechanically placing predetermined numbers of stringed tags into containers.